Kids Meal Ideas: Preparing healthy food for toddlers to eat

Preparing healthy meals for your kid can be challenging for every parent, but can also cause everyday headaches thinking of a combination of nutritious foods that are best for them. It is difficult to determine if your prepared meals are actually tasty for your toddler, but like every parent as long as you can you are trying to avoid every kind of fast, unhealthy food for your kids.

But what is considered a healthy food for toddlers to eat? Read on for some tips that can help you easily cope with one of the biggest responsibilities of parenting.

Cereals

Cereals are healthy nourishment and a very rich source of vitamins, fats, oils, minerals, carbohydrates,  and protein. Kids usually love them, so they seem like a win-win combination for breakfast, dinner, or served as a snack. Also, they are quick and easy to prepare and will not require too much time and effort in the kitchen. 

Overnight oats put in low-fat yogurt or healthy granola with almond milk and bananas are a great combination for a good meal. Moreover, you can eat them dry or softened slightly in milk, put them in smoothies or serve them together with fruits. 

But it is very important to try to find a healthier brand to please your toddler’s needs, and when purchasing a cereal you should choose the one that has no or only small amounts of added sugar.

Smoothies and juices

Smoothies hydrate and provide a crucial boost of energy, so you can prepare them for your toddler at any time during the day. Of course, the main ingredients in this kind of meal are fruit and vegetables, but instead of water, you can increase calories using yogurt, kefir, or milk. Also, make sure you put a source of fat like flax, chia seeds, grains oats, or nut butter.

Use your imagination and make various combinations to prepare a real energy boost that your child will adore. Whether it is made with frozen berries or spinach and pineapple, and no matter what the season is, a smoothie is a welcome treat in your loved one’s diet.

Juices made from fresh fruits are great treats from time to time, but water is still the best liquid to keep toddlers hydrated. Moderate consumption of fruit juices may work as probiotics acceptable for gut health and may have antioxidant effects.

Fruits and veggies

You should make fruits and vegetables easy and accessible for your toddler. Washing and preparing them together is an interesting way to show them that it is easy to make a healthy meal. 

Prepare some carrots and cucumbers sticks and keep them in the fridge for snacking at any time of the day. Steamed veggies are a good addition to every lunch or dinner meal. If you have some garden space available, plant some pots with cherry tomatoes and sweet baby peppers so kids will watch them grow and ripen and be proud of the results, making them more willing to try their own produce. 

Don’t give up offering different kinds of fruits a few times during the day. Switching up how you serve the fruits can really help to make your little ones fall in love with fresh fruits and veggies. There are plenty of ideas from making bananas into frozen penguins to snails from apples and pears.

You just have to be persistent and patient in your intention to teach your child that fruits and vegetables should become part of their daily menu.

Healthy snacks

When kids are growing, they often need treats between meals. Instead of extremely processed foods, feed your toddler with food that will boost their energy. There are a lot of kid-friendly snacks like a baked sweet potato, banana oat cookies, energy balls, to name a few. Also, if you are out and need to find a quick snack for your tot, there are plenty of processed food replacements at the store, including granola bars, crackers, fruit bars, and dried fruit, all things that have a longer shelf life and can stay longer in your kid’s backpack.

Soups

Homemade soups can seriously improve your kid’s overall well-being. Especially for picky eaters, who don’t want to eat fresh vegetables, the soup is an honestly easy way to include additional veggies into their daily meal. This kind of meal contains a good amount of water so it is great for keeping your toddlers hydrated and, of course, contains a lot of vitamins, minerals, fiber, and protein in just one bowl. 

Soups and stews are really healthy, delicious, and easily digestible for kids during the cold season when the chances of having the common flu are very high. This meal is the best when served freshly prepared and warm. 

Final thoughts

A good habit once learned remains with us to the end of our lives. So try to encourage your children to eat more freshly prepared and healthy food, rather than to reach for processed food. Everything they learn from an early age about their diet will be something they incorporate in their meal plans throughout their entire life. 

Proper nutrition prevents health problems and complications, and so nutrient-rich food takes a major role in your child’s mental and physical development. Remember toddler’s diet should be rich in protein, fruit, vegetables, and whole grains. The outcome of allowing your kids to have poor nutrition is bad for their long-term health. That’s why the parents’ obligation is to make healthy food more easily available to their kids.